Key 15 - Corporate Guidance

• What is right?  Doing what you KNOW God would want you to do according to the Bible.  Don’t just act upon feelings or whims.  1 John 4 says, “Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world.”

• Not every impulse and idea you have is from God.  God speaks in a still, small voice.  If the voice in your head - the impulse - is screaming, “Do it!  Do it now!  Quick!  Before it’s too late!  Do it before someone stops you!”  Chances are, that’s not from God.  He typically speaks in a voice that is more soft and reassuring.

• Another way to know it’s God is that God will never contradict Himself.  He CANNOT lie.  So, if anything you think or feel contradicts the Bible or something else God told you to do, it’s definitely not from Him.  Always ask yourself, “Is this the right thing to do?  Is it REALLY the right thing?  Would God approve?  Does it line up with scripture?”

• God gave us others in our lives partially so that we can discuss our decisions with them. If there is any doubt in your head, contact someone you trust who you know will pray for you.  If they pray about it and also feel that He wants you to do that thing, you can have far greater confidence that it actually is from God.

• Here’s another clue that it’s not from God:  Are you hiding it from others?  If it’s from God, you will feel bold and confident about it.  You won’t need to hide it.  The woman who almost died at my previous church was told by the pastor and his wife that she shouldn’t stop taking her medicines, but she did it anyway and hid it from them, not trusting their advice and counsel.

• And again, the Widow presented her fears to Elijah, testing to see how the Man of God would respond.  She was testing the spirits.  She trusted that Elijah would not lead her astray.  This same principle is what we need to do more in the church with one another.  If we feel God is telling us to do some really risky things, we should “test the spirits”.

• Here are several things to think about when activating Faith:

  • If God told you to do it today, He’ll still be telling you to do it a day or two from now, or a week or a month.

  • If God told you to do it, He will tell others who are listening to Him the same thing.  

  • If God told you to do it then it won’t contradict the Bible.  

  • Finally, if God told you to do something, you won’t feel ashamed and like you need to hide it from others.